Over 9 In 10 Adults Make An Effort To Eat Healthy

Published on Mar 13 2018 10:38 AM

Over 9 in 10 (92%) adults are currently making efforts to eat healthier or exercise more, with females (94%) marginally more likely to be doing so than males (90%). Recent research on behalf of Retail Intelligence by Empathy Research, amongst a nationally representative sample of 1,013 adults aged 18+, sought to understand which behaviours are being undertaken and what that means for retailers.

Almost half of adults (46%) claim that they are exercising more than they used to. This behaviour is highest amongst those aged 18-24 (61%) but is largely consistent across all other age groups and genders. In line with this increase in exercise, almost the same proportion (45%) of adults claim they have reduced the amount of chocolate and sweets they are consuming. This behaviour is significantly more likely to be evident amongst females, with just over half (52%) of females reducing their chocolate and sweet intake.

There are a sizeable cohort of adults who are also increasing the amount of fruit (44%) and vegetables (41%) they are consuming. While the proportion that increased consumption of fruit is equal across males and females, there are more females (45%) claiming to have increased the amount of vegetables they are consuming, than males (37%). There are some 4 in 10 (40%) adults who claim they are paying close attention to the food they eat now, with a quarter (25%) going as far as preparing meals in advance. Females (34%) and those aged under 34 (32%) are significantly more likely to be “meal-prepping”.

Combined with a closer focus on the food being consumed, there are also 4 in 10 (36%) adults who claim they have reduced the amount of alcohol they are currently consuming. This is primarily driven by those aged under 35-44 (44%).

For further information and more in-depth analysis in relation to healthy eating practices, please contact Robbie Clarke at Empathy Research.